1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of telecommunications. More particularly, the present invention relates to advanced intelligent network (AIN) call services enhanced for voice interaction with subscribers and callers.
2. Acronyms
The written description provided herein contains acronyms which refer to various telecommunications services, components and techniques, as well as features relating to the present invention. Although some of these acronyms are known, use of these acronyms is not strictly standardized in the art. For purposes of the written description herein, the acronyms are defined as follows:
Advanced Intelligent Network (AIN)
Anonymous Call Rejection (ACR)
Authentication/Subscription Information (ASI)
Caller Identification (Caller ID)
Central Office (CO)
Common Object Request Broker Architecture (CORBA)
Dual Tone Multi-Frequency (DTMF)
Electronic Key Telephone System (EKTS)
Generic Data Interface (GDI)
Graphical User Interface (GUI)
HyperText Mark-Up Language (HTML)
HyperText Transfer Language Protocol (HTTP)
Incoming Call Manager (ICM)
Interactive Voice Response (IVR)
Internet Caller Identification (ICID)
Internet Call Waiting (ICW)
Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP)
Line Information Database (LIDB)
Local Access and Transport Area (LATA)
local exchange carrier (LEC)
Local Number Portability (LNP)
Numbering Plan Area (NPA)
Off-Hook Delay (OHD)
Outgoing Call Control (OCC)
Personal Computer (PC)
Personal Call Manager/Personal Communications Manager (PCM)
Personal Digital Assistant (PDA)
Personal Identification Number (PIN)
Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS)
Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN)
Registration Server (RS)
Service Control Point (SCP)
Service Management System (SMS)
Service Node/Intelligent Peripheral (SN/IP)
Service Switching Point (SSP)
Signaling System 7 (SS7)
Signaling Transfer Point (STP)
Subscriber Internet Provider (SIP)
Time of Day/Day of Week (TOD/DOW)
Terminating Attempt Trigger (TAT)
Transaction Capabilities Application Part (TCAP)
Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)
Uniform Resource Locator (URL)
World Wide Web (WWW)
3. Background Information
Currently, subscribers to call control services within the public switched telephone network (PSTN) are able to initiate and modify their services by calling a customer service representative or by interacting with an interactive voice response (IVR) system using a standard dual tone multi-frequency (DTMF) telephone device. These methods practically limit the number and types of services that can be provided to and modified by the subscribers because all information pertaining to the services is presented audibly. In addition, the potential market for subscribers to call control services is not fully exploited because of customer reluctance to use IVR systems.
Furthermore, for many call control services, subscribers must submit requests to the customer service arm of their provider to initiate new services or update existing ones. The requests are implemented according to the provider's time line and discretion. It is difficult for the users to gauge when the service alteration will take effect.
There have been attempts to remedy the problems associated with IVR access to PSTN services. These attempts incorporate use of packet switched data networks, such as the Internet, to avoid conventional IVR systems and to streamline the initiation and modification functions. The current Internet based systems have several drawbacks, however, including the inability to ensure near real-time update of services and incompatibility with existing IVR implementations. Also, because the current Internet based systems operate exclusively from the conventional IVR systems, i.e., the two systems cannot coexist, customers must select either the Internet interface or the IVR interface. Consequently, a customer who has selected the Internet interface, and who is without a personal computer (PC) and/or Internet access, is not able to make desired changes to his or her services through an IVR. The inability to implement desired changes is especially troublesome considering that users are often interested in altering some call services (e.g., call screening, call forwarding, paging, and caller ID) when they are away from their home or business telephone and PC.
An example of call control services provided over a packet switched data network is described in CHANG et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,958,016, which teaches enabling advanced intelligence network (AIN) services over the World Wide Web (WWW or “the web”) through a provisioning system called the service management system (SMS). The service management system as disclosed in CHANG et al., however, does not ensure near real-time data update and is not compatible with existing IVR implementations. Therefore, the services presented via the web are limited in functionality to the extent near real-time data updates are not guaranteed. For example, if a subscriber modifies an incoming call service, which blocks calls from selected phone numbers or classes of phone numbers, to add an allowed incoming phone number, the subscriber will not begin immediately to receive calls from the newly blocked phone number. Rather, the subscriber must wait an unspecified period of time for the service to be updated via the SMS. Also, as discussed above, the web interface and the IVR interface are mutually exclusive.
One conventional call control service is call blocking, in which incoming or outgoing calls are blocked based on selected time periods or on the calling telephone number. For example, if a family wishes not to be disturbed at dinner time, the subscriber initiates an incoming call blocking service, e.g., depressing a predetermined sequence of keys of a DTMF telephone, to avoid receiving all incoming calls from 5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Similarly, a business that conducts a daily staff meeting from 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. may redirect all incoming calls to an answering service. Likewise, conventional services enable subscribers to block calls from selected telephone numbers, e.g., telemarketers, to avoid harassment or interruptions.
Outgoing calls may similarly be blocked based on selected time periods or on called telephone numbers. Conventionally, outgoing calls are blocked during certain hours selected by the subscriber. For example, calls from a teenager's telephone can be blocked from 9:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. the following day in order to prevent excessive nightly use of the telephone and to encourage the teenager to do homework or go to bed. Further, a typical application of controlling outgoing calls based on telephone numbers is blocking calls to “900” numbers from the subscriber's business or home, avoiding potentially inappropriate communications and undesirable bills. Also, conventional services typically enable blocking of all long distance calls initiated from the subscriber's telephone.
One drawback of the current call blocking service is that, because of the lack of precise control, it may prevent completion of important calls to and from the subscriber's telephone number during the call blocking activation period. For example, a service that merely blocks all incoming calls to the subscriber's home during a preselected time period each day, or originating from a particular area code, may inadvertently prevent the subscriber from calling his own home. Similarly, the subscriber is unable to complete a telephone call from his own home during a restricted period, or to a restricted number, without first deactivating the call blocking feature. The unblocking process is time consuming and, in an emergency situation, potentially disastrous. This is especially the case where a subscriber must painstakingly use an IVR system dependent on touch tones of a DTMF telephone.
Another disadvantage is that the subscriber does not know what and when telephone calls are blocked, unless the subscriber also subscribes to (and activates) a separate service, e.g., caller identification, automated voice messaging, etc., that captures the information. Further, conventional call blocking systems do not provide instantaneous (or nearly instantaneous) call blocking data from the PSTN to the customer.
In addition, there is no convenient way to interactively access AIN call services, e.g., changing forwarding phone numbers, accessing records of blocked calls, activating schedules, activating restricted number lists, and the like, that is consistently and reliably available to the customer, regardless of the customer's circumstances and location. For example, some conventional AIN call services are generally accessible to the customer either using a DTMF telephone through an IVR system in the PSTN or using a graphical user interface (GUI) over the Internet. The IVR communication is often more convenient due to the common accessibility of DTMF telephones. IVR interaction is time consuming and often tedious and undesirable from the subscriber's point of view. This is especially true when the subscriber or caller must enter long series of numbers using the touch-tone keypad, as may be the case for extended IVR menuing and security information, such as an account number, an access number and a personal identification numbers (PIN). Although automated speech recognition capability in an IVR may be an improvement, such systems are not generally available for AIN call services and exclude the ability of the subscriber to access and modify the services over the Internet.
The Internet communication may be preferable under many circumstances, because service related data is provided quickly and in easily comprehensible visual (as opposed to audio) formats. However, Internet communications require an Internet accessible device, such as a personal computer or a personal digital assistant (PDA). Internet accessible devices are significantly more expensive than DTMF telephones and less readily accessible. Also, in order to have both IVR and Internet access to control call forwarding, subscribers would have to open separate accounts, which is inconvenient and potentially difficult for the provider to reconcile, especially where the multiple accounts may send conflicting information regarding calls to be forwarded with respect to the same telephone number.
The present invention overcomes the problems associated with the prior art, as described below.